WorldSkills International, China's automotive refinish competition, was held recently at PPG Industries' new Shanghai Training Center. PPG helped organize the competition and provided tools, facilities and premium car-painting products for contestants from across the country.

Mou Jun, director of the China Employment Training Technical Instruction Center, Ministry of Human Resources and Social Security of the People's Republic of China, Gu Weidong, director of the Shanghai Occupational Skill Testing Center, and other government officials attended the event.

WorldSkills International has a 60-year history in vocational training. This year's competition was sponsored by the Ministry of Human Resources and Social Security of the People's Republic of China, the Shanghai Municipal Human Resources and Social Security Bureau and the Shanghai Occupational Skill Testing Center.

"As a leading refinish coatings supplier, PPG is honored to cooperate with the government to support and host this event," said Pauline Yuen, PPG vice president, refinish coatings Asia. "PPG shows its commitment to the development of China's automotive refinish industry by continuing to invest in talent-development programs for spray finishing."

PPG began supporting vocational education programs for automotive refinish in China in 2004, when it initiated a school-enterprise cooperative program, and the company continues to proactively develop relationships with vocational schools. In early 2011, PPG entered into a School-Enterprise Cooperative Agreement with the Ministry of Education, marking the inauguration of official occupational training for automotive coatings in China. In addition, PPG has actively engaged in and organized major spray-finishing competitions in China in recent years.

Due to the high demand for spray-finishing talent, PPG debuted its upgraded Shanghai Training Center in May 2012. The 3,000-square-meter training center is equipped with state-of-the-art equipment and facilities. Along with established PPG centers in Beijing, Guangzhou and Chengdu, the new Shanghai facility provides enhanced training experiences for technicians from Chinese customers such as automotive manufacturers, auto service centers and car dealers.